Mapping Satellite Inherent Optical Properties Index in Coastal Waters of the Yucatán Peninsula (Mexico)

Jesús Aguilar-Maldonado,María-Teresa Sebastiá-Frasquet,Adriana González-Silvera,Eduardo Santamaría-Del-Ángel,Omar Cervantes-Rosas

doi:10.3390/su10061894

Abstract

The Yucatán Peninsula hosts worldwide-known tourism destinations that concentrate most of the Mexico tourism activity. In this region, tourism has exponentially increased over the last years, including wildlife oriented tourism. Rapid tourism development, involving the consequent construction of hotels and tourist commodities, is associated with domestic sewage discharges from septic tanks. In this karstic environment, submarine groundwater discharges are very important and highly vulnerable to anthropogenic pollution. Nutrient loadings are linked to harmful algal blooms, which are an issue of concern to local and federal authorities due to their recurrence and socioeconomic and human health costs. In this study, we used satellite products from MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) to calculate and map the satellite Inherent Optical Properties (IOP) Index. We worked with different scenarios considering both holiday and hydrological seasons. Our results showed that the satellite IOP Index allows one to build baseline information in a sustainable mid-term or long-term basis which is key for ecosystem-based management.

Highlights

Tourism is an industry highly dependent on natural resources, and is key for the economy of many regions [1,2]
Decreased water clarity caused by eutrophication processes and harmful algal blooms (HABs) affects trip satisfaction, and the likelihood of a tourist coming back to the same destination [2]
As eutrophication processes and increased HAB frequency are two of the major impacts on coastal waters [7,8,9], we propose to monitor these impacts using an indicator which can give continuous information to assess current conditions

Summary

Introduction

Tourism is an industry highly dependent on natural resources, and is key for the economy of many regions [1,2]. Coastal and marine tourism is one segment of the tourism market that has experienced the most important development in recent years [1,3] This fast development has increased attention on the impacts that tourism activity produces on the same natural resources that attract tourists, especially in the absence of a sustainable planning [1]. As Bentz et al [1] describe, the process of establishing LAC identifies desirable ecological conditions, choice indicators of these conditions, assesses current conditions, identifies management actions, and monitors and evaluates implemented management actions. In this framework, the choice of the indicator is a key step. As eutrophication processes and increased HAB frequency are two of the major impacts on coastal waters [7,8,9], we propose to monitor these impacts using an indicator which can give continuous information to assess current conditions

Objectives

Results

Conclusion